Nintendo Takes Action Against Pirates

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A court order stops sale of unauthorized NES ports.

By David Adams

Nintendo of America today announced it has won a temporary restraining order from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against the import or sale of video game systems containing counterfeit Nintendo games.

Legal action was taken after Nintendo learned that various mall kiosks were selling products which look like Nintendo 64 controllers. Designed to be connected directly to a television, the products contain classic NES games, such as Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong.

Nintendo thanks tips from more than 400 "loyal fans" for alerting the company to the products, which have been sold under names such as "Power Player," "Super Joystick," "Superjoy" and "Powerjoy." Nintendo is asking mall management companies nationwide to immediately close kiosks selling the products. The company reports it has identified 40 states in which the illegal products are being sold.

Nintendo expects calculated losses from the piracy -- which the company claims is the largest such infraction it has seen in the United States -- to be in the millions of dollars, taking into account damage to both its reputation and relationships with existing business partners.

"This action is one of many steps Nintendo is taking to protect its creative rights and to combat the growing international problem of product piracy," explains Jodi Daugherty, director of anti-piracy at Nintendo of America. "Nintendo won't tolerate these illegal products, and is grateful to its devoted customers. We'll aggressively protect the quality and integrity of the video game products our fans are so loyal to."